The present invention relates to electrical connectors and in particular to a solder post alignment and retention system for right angle mounted connectors.
Right angle connectors are typically mounted on a printed circuit board. A complementary connector mates with the right angle connector in a direction parallel to the printed circuit board. Contacts in the right angle connector have a mating portion that is parallel to the printed circuit board and a mounting portion that is in electrical contact with circuits on the printed circuit board, with the mounting portion, typically a solder tail, extending from the mating face of the connector substantially at a right angle to the mating portion of the contact. Solder tails typically extend through plated through holes in the printed circuit board and are soldered. The array of printed circuit board through holes have the same pattern and spacing as the solder tails extending from the mating face of the connector.
Various approaches have been taken to maintain the solder tails in the predetermined array configuration. One approach has been to make the connector housing in multiple parts, one of which is a locator plate having an array of apertures corresponding to the pattern and spacing of solder tails extending from the mating face of the connector. After all of the contacts are inserted into the connector housing, the locator plate is passed over the solder tails from the ends thereof and o secured to the connector housing. U.S. Pat. No. 4,080,041 is typical of this approach.
Other approaches use slotted locator plates. With the contacts inserted into contact receiving passages in a connector, the solder tails are bent into the slots of the locator plate to form a right angle with respect to the mating portion of the contacts. U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,376 discloses a right angle connector in which conductors adjacent their lower ends are provided with retaining lances. The lances are received in recesses in the sidewalls of the channels to retain the conductors in the channels. When drawn wire conductors are used alternately deep and shallow channels may be used. The channels have extremely narrow entrance portions and enlarged inner ends. The inner ends should be dimensional to accommodate the wire conductors and the narrow entrance portion should have a width such that the conductors must be forced into the channels.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,493,916 discloses a right angle connector having a plurality of terminals which have a rearward end portion extending through either a first series of relatively long slots or a second series of relatively short slots in a rearwardly extending flange portion of the connector.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,491,376 issued to Gladd et al. employs a slotted locator plate in which the slots are narrower in width than the solder tails. Each slot is aligned vertically with a contact receiving passage in both rows of contact receiving passages. Each slot has two detents formed by recesses in the otherwise parallel walls of the locator plate slots. The lower row of solder tails is bent about an anvil and forced into the forward detents in the locator plate slots. Subsequently, the upper row of solder tails is bent and forced into the rear detents in the locator plate and forced into the rear detents in the locator plate slots. Gladd et al. do not teach whether all of the tails of one row are bent simultaneously or whether the tails are bent individually or otherwise. Since the tails are wider than the slots it would be difficult if not impossible to simultaneously bend all tails in a row and insert them in respective locator plate. Furthermore there is no teaching of the cross section of the detents relative to the cross section of the tails.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,225,209 discloses a right angle connector in which conductors are received in spaced apart channels with alternate channels being relatively deep. The sidewalls of the channels are provided with depressions or recesses which receive barbs integral with and extending laterally from the side edges of the conductors. The intermediate portions of the conductors which extend from apertures to the channels are thus held rigidly by the barbs in the channels and by the conductors received in the apertures.
U.S. application Ser. No. 876,970 filed June 19, 1986 discloses a right angle connector having three rows of contacts. The contacts are inserted into contact receiving passages in the connector housing. The contact receiving passages open into channels axially aligned therewith on mandrels with a mandrel associated with each row of contacts. The contacts are bent over the mandrels forming a right-angled bend and passed into slots in a contact locating plate beneath the mandrels with the slots in line with the contacts. The upper and lower rows of contacts are laterally aligned with each other and with a first contact receiving slot. The first slot has two widths with a rib on each wall forming the slot extending into the slot along the length thereof. When the contacts are positioned in the slot, the ribs secure the contact at the desired position by an interference fit. The middle row of contacts is aligned with a second contact receiving slot having ribs on each wall which secure contacts positioned therein at the desired position by an interference fit.